With more and more online accounting packages and cloud servers running any application you can think of, it is more important than ever to be aware of what you can do to protect your company’s (and your customers’) data.
The FCC has created a free Cyber Security Planning Guide (go to www.fcc.gov/cyberplanner). With a few clicks of your mouse you can create a customized planning guide to lead you through what you need to do to protect your data. The document you create will walk you through several questions you need to answer about your business. Things like: What kind of data do you have in your business? How is that data handled and protected? Who has/needs access to the data? Depending on your business, this data may include:
- Customer sales records
- Customer credit card transactions
- Customer mailing and email lists
- Customer support information
- Customer IDs and passwords
- Customer warranty information
- Patient health or medical records
- Employee payroll records
- Employee email lists
- Employee health and medical records
- Business and personal financial records
- Marketing plans
- Business leads and enquiries
- Product design and development plans
- Legal, tax and financial correspondence
The planner then walks you through developing a privacy policy and creating levels of security.
Two other critical components to protecting your data include backing up your data on a frequent basis and having an action plan in case of data loss or theft. Part of this action plan should also include adding cyber liability insurance to your business insurance policy. Check with your insurance agent to see what is appropriate for your business.
There are several links throughout the Cyber Security Planning Guide that will give you additional help in understanding how to secure your data. If you have not created a plan for your business yet, this is a great place to start. You may also want to contact a cyber security specialist, like Justotech in NC. (https://www.justotech.com/what-we-do/small-business-cyber-security-solutions/)